The Sporting Life on the East End

ORIENT POINT. From the tip of the North Fork, anglers can head in several directions. To the southwest, along the fork's south shore, fishing is excellent for flounder in spring and fluke in summer. Similar conditions apply northwest of the point, on a 7-mile shoreline stretching to Truman Beach; blackfish can be found amid rocks near the lighthouse. Due east, Plum Gut -- the channel between Orient and Plum Island -- is a prime spot for bluefish and striped bass. Near Plum Island Harbor, flounder and fluke fishing is good, and blackfish can be found off the west and north shores. As the bottom dips as deep as 80 feet, currents flow through an area north of Plum Island, Pigeon Rip, which is outstanding for bluefish in midsummer.One also can head due north of Orient toward Fishers Island, off the Connecticut coast. The area between Fishers and Little Gull Islands, known as The Race for its swift currents, offers superb summer bluefishing for the angler with the proper boat.

GARDINERS ISLAND. This isle, between the North and South forks, offers varying opportunities: bay-like conditions on the east, facing the Atlantic; calmer on the sheltered west side. A shoal to the south offers good striped bass possibilities, while Eastern Plain Point and Tobaccolot Bay southwest are rife with summer flounder. The main boating channel to the south is outstanding for flounder.

PECONIC BAY. Not one bay, it's a series of bays and channels west of Gardiners Island, around and beyond Shelter Island between the forks: Shelter Island Sound, Hog Neck, Noyack Bay and Flanders Bay, as well as the larger Little Peconic and Great Peconic Bays. Porgies and weakfish are the big catches, porgies mostly from Greater and Little Peconic Bays, and weakfish especially south of Robins Island. The western end of the Greater Peconics is good for .flounder.

MONTAUK POINT. One of the world's great fishing areas, jutting into the Atlantic at the eastern tip of the South Fork. It's relatively close to the edge of the Continental Shelf, storied grounds of the big sportfish. Montauk also offers some flounder fishing in Montauk Lake, once a fresh-water pond that was opened to the sea. Relatively shallow waters around Montauk are a nirvana for surfcasters, especially in spring and fall, when the hunt is on for striped bass. A onetime world-record striped bass, 76 pounds, was caught near here in 1981. World marks in marlin, shark and swordfish, among others, were also set by boats fishing from these harbors. West along the shores of the North Fork, as well as the South Fork, anglers will find more fishing grounds. Weakfish help fill lulls between striped bass catches. Offshore, currents racing past shoals between Montauk and Block Island, known as the Pollock Rip, bring an abundance of fish. In the Elbow, east of Montauk, striped bass and bluefish are plentiful. Another striped bass spot is off Shagwong Point, 3 miles northwest of Montauk Point. Move 50-70 miles south, and you approach the edge of the Continental Shelf. Great canyons are cut into the shelf, where giant creatures make their homes, along with countless other species that migrate along the Gulf Stream. Most deep-sea fishing is done in New York Bight, a rough triangle with one side formed by a line connecting Montauk and Cape May, N.J. Several favored fishing areas, such as the Mud Hole and the Patchogue Grounds, provide a wide variety of species: bluefish, tuna, dolphin, cod, pollack, sea bass and more.

THREE-MILE HARBOR. About 20 miles west of Montauk, this 2-mile-long harbor on the north shore of the South Fork is similar to Lake Montauk in configuration; an almost wholly enclosed body with a narrow channel opening into Gardiners Bay. Similarly, the harbor attracts primarily flounder, especially early in the season, starting in February. Much of the harbor is shallow, and fish tend to concentrate along a channel on the western side and at the inlet. The harbor deepens in the middle, and fish move toward that area as the season progresses.

SHINNECOCK BAY. The first major bay west of the Hamptons stretches about 9 miles behind a barrier beach, broken only by Shinnecock Inlet. Three miles opposite, Shinnecock Canal provides access to Peconic Bay. And in the middle, the land mass pinches down toward the barrier beach at Ponquogue Point, almost cutting the bay in half. The eastern portion draws most of the anglers. Flounder, fluke and occasionally bass are the prime catches, especially around the channel leading from Shinnecock Inlet to the canal. Anglers fishing the far eastern part of the bay, where waters deepen near the Shinnecock Reservation, report good early season flounder fishing.

SHINNECOCK CANAL. The quarter-mile canal provides not only an important outlet to the sea for harbors on Peconic Bay but also some important fishing opportunities, especially early in the season. That's when flounder, fluke and weakfish migrating north move through here in greater concentrations. To take advantage, anglers must be aware of the action of the canal gates, which open and close with the tides. When the gates are open, current and fish pass at great speed. When the gates are closed, fish gather at the Shinnecock Bay entrance -- as do astute anglers.

MORICHES BAY. Second of the 3 major South Shore bays, Moriches is almost 12 miles long but shallow, much of it less than 3 feet deep. The barrier beach here is broken by Moriches Inlet, where fluke, striped bass and blackfish often are caught. Elsewhere in the bay, the main east-west channel provides most of the fishing, essentially for fluke and flounder. The bay has a reputation for yielding flounder for most of the year.

GREAT SOUTH BAY. The biggest of the 3 major South Shore bays, Great South Bay extends east and west more than 30 miles behind the Fire Island barrier beach. Access to the ocean is via Fire Island Inlet on the western part of the bay (although boaters also can reach Moriches Inlet to the east by going through Narrow Bay). This vast stretch of water, 5 miles wide at some points, also is the deepest of the South Shore bays, with depths in the eastern portion running 10 feet or more. The lack of ocean access in that section, however, limits most of the fishing there to flounder.Elsewhere, channels cutting through the bay provide varied options. The Babylon Cut, at the western edge, offers good bass and weakfishing. Flounder and bluefish are found in the western part near the Robert Moses Causeway. In the eastern portion, the main east-west channel, near tiny East Fire and West Fire Islands, north of the long Fire Island barrier beach, is good for weakfish. Toward Fire Island Inlet to the west, Snake Hill Channel offers flounder and weakfish in spring, and fluke later.

FIRE ISLAND INLET. The inlet area west of Robert Moses Causeway offers excellent fishing, especially off the Oak Beach area. Striped bass, blackfish, flounder and fluke are prominent. The tidal flow makes for some turbulent waters, so anglers who don't fish off the beaches should come prepared. Where the inlet broadens into Great South Bay, a smaller inlet between Captree State Park and Captree Island is prime fluke area.

JONES INLET. Nassau's major South Shore harbors feed off this inlet, whose currents encounter a series of grassy isles and minor bays and channels before opening onto South Oyster Bay and East Bay. There's heavy traffic, as boats from several harbors converge before the inlet. Most fishing is on the main east- west channel, Reynolds Channel, and some north-south channels, especially where they meet creeks and canals.A major north-south channel is Long Creek, which leads to Freeport and Baldwin. There's good flounder and fluke fishing at various points, including the Bay of Fundy, just east of Long Creek. .Another key north-south channel is Swift Creek, leading to Merrick Bay and East Bay, where flounder and weakfish can be taken, along with some striped bass and, near the overpasses, blackfish.

GROUP FOR THE SOUTH FORK, P.O. Box 569, Bridgehampton. Web: www.thehamptons.com/group Activities: More than 40 hikes a year; $5 per hike (free for members). Membership: $50 per family. Information: 631-537-1400.

ESPO'S SURF CLASSIC, 57 Main St., East Hampton, 631-329-9100. Web: www.espos.net Features: All ages amateur competitions on long boards, performance boards and Boogie boards, hosted by the Eastern Surf Association. Call for schedule, usually in late July or early August. Free for spectators.